A Supreme Court decision to scrap a controversial political funding system has pushed contributions to parties towards “black money”, or illegal funds, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in remarks broadcast yesterday.
India’s top court in February scrapped as unconstitutional a seven-year-old election funding system through instruments called “electoral bonds” that allowed individuals and companies to make unlimited and anonymous donations to political parties.
Corporate funding of political parties is a sensitive matter in India and, while there is no suggestion that funds from the bonds scheme were improper, opposition parties allege that Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party used its powers to coerce funding.
In his most detailed defence of the scrapped system days before India begins voting in a general election, Modi denied accusations and said companies had also donated to the opposition. He said the system was more transparent than previous ones, but added that there was room for policy improvement.
“In decision-making, we learn and improve. It is very possible to improve in this too. But today we have completely pushed the country towards black money,” Modi said in an interview to ANI.
“And that is why I say everyone will regret it. When they will think honestly, everyone will regret it.” Data released on orders of the SC in March showed Modi’s BJP was the largest beneficiary of scrapped system.
Source: Reuters
